About Gaur:
- Gaur, also known as Indian Bison is the largest species among the wild cattle and the Bovidae.
- Distribution: Gaurs are indigenous to the South and Southeast parts of Asia.
- Habitat:
- Gaurs are primarily found in evergreen and semi-evergreen forests along with moist deciduous forests with open grasslands.
- They prefer hilly-terrains below an altitude of 1,500-1,800 m with large and undisturbed forest tracts and abundant water.
- Conservation Status:
- IUCN Red List: Vulnerable
- CITES: Appendix I
- Wild Life Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I
- Ecological Significance: It plays a vital role in maintaining ecological balance in forests besides serving as important prey species for tigers. Being herbivores, they also help shape vegetation dynamics and contribute to seed dispersal.
- Threats: Loss of habitat throughout most of their range. Another serious concern is susceptibility to domestic cattle diseases like rinderpest, hoof, or mouth disease.
About Palamau Tiger Reserve (PTR):
- It is located on the western side of the Latehar district on the Chhotanagpur plateau in Jharkhand.
- The reserve forms a part of the Betla National Park.
- It has a total area of 1,014 sq.km. with a core area of 414 sq.km. and a buffer area of 600 sq.km.
- It is one of the first 9 tiger reserves created in the country at the inception of ‘Project Tiger’.
- It is the first reserve in the world in which a tiger census was carried out as a pugmark count, as early as 1932 under the supervision of J.W. Nicholson.
- The terrain is undulating with valleys, hills, and plains.
- Three rivers, namely North Koyal, Auranga, and Burha flow through the valleys.
- The area is drought-prone with Burha being the only perennial river.
- The geological formation consists of gneiss and includes granite and limestone.
- The area is very rich in minerals like Bauxite and Coal.
- Flora: The vegetation in Palamau region comprises moist deciduous and dry deciduous forests to include Sal and bamboo as the major components.
- Fauna: Some keystone and principal species found in the reserve include Tiger, Asiatic Elephant, Leopard, Grey wolf, Wild dog, Gaur, Sloth bear and four horned antelope.
